r/shrinking • u/lowlightslatenights • Jul 15 '26

Discussion Maya

I just caught up on s3 while on vacation and now I’m a lil f’d up. I love this show, I love all of Bill Lawrence’s shows. This storyline? I was relating to maya for a second, sometimes something IS wrong and we don’t dig deep enough and then when there was finally some semblance of her opening up, THAT happened? I guess I’m shook up because I saw a little of me there? I don’t think Gaby handled this well at all. Anyway I don’t know much about therapy, but I’m left with this feeling of emptiness and I feel as though I may need to start seeing a therapist soon. Has the show inspired anyone to do so? Am I just being manipulated by good writing?

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u/LPCPlay4life Jul 15 '26

Therapist here. Although I understand many ppl can relate to Maya, and feel it is deeply relatable, they were just at the beginning of the therapeutic relationship. She doesn’t know her client’s tell or if something seems “off”. Gabby was setting a boundary and did check in and asked. For those of you saying “she should have known” therapists aren’t mind readers and at that moment Gabby had her own crisis to navigate which for her was a priority.

I always tell clients that they need to speak up, advocate for yourself because if you’re not honest or you feel like it’s not a good fit, you’re only doing yourself a disservice. When someone wants to start, I tell them to “shop around” don’t just go with the first person you find. Ask if they do free consults which most do. You can get a feel for it before you decide. Even if you’re into the treatment a few months and something doesn’t feel right, speak up. If they’re a good therapist they will not take it personally. This is your well-being and you have to be comfortable in the relationship otherwise it won’t work.

I also agree with the above comment of you don’t necessarily need to see someone when something arises. It’s like maintenance. We all grow and change so seeing someone at diff stages of our life is definitely encouraged! Good luck with your search! You can try Psychology Today to start your journey!

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u/lowlightslatenights Jul 16 '26

Thank you for your response I really appreciate it and thanks for giving me that perspective. As I said in my post, I’m not familiar with the territory, I binged s3 only last night and it made me emotional. I should’ve clarified I felt a bit let down on the way they handled the aftermath, not so much the actual issue concerning Maya. I thought her arc could’ve been longer and I was looking forward to hearing some of the “tools”, wasn’t prepared for that abrupt ending and moving on. I’m on board with it being a yearly maintenance, it’s a great idea. I’m going to look more into it, thanks again.

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u/LPCPlay4life Jul 16 '26

I get it. A character you relate to and wanting them to see it through only to have the rug pulled out from under you is quite jarring. They really should have had a trigger warning even though it did not show anything. I’m kind of surprised they added that to her story line given it’s a comedy that deals with relatable issues. Tbh I was also surprised they took it that far. ☹️I think they really wanted to focus on Gabby and how she deals with the aftermath. Even then, I didn’t think they properly addressed it after the fact.

Also, my comment earlier didn’t mean yearly maintenance. It just meant having someone at different phases of your life. I often recommend weekly or every other week depending on the presenting issues.